Burial-vault.



- W. J. GORMAN.

BURIAL VAULT-.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 19. I916,

. Patented Oct. 9,1911,

. 6 a 4 Ni fin? WV T m W 5 b 7. 1% 1V v w FTM e 7/ m 0 4 v I I. In Fla w\ 74 40 1. W/

Walter J Germ/am.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER .r. eomvmmor JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

BUBIAL-VAULT.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER J. GORMAN, a citizen of the United States, and residing at Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Burial-Vaults, ofwhich the following is a specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to burial vaults or cases designed to receive coflins, and the object thereof is to provide an improved de vice of this class which is made of rein forced concrete and which will exclude all water or moisture, and which is also provided with improved means for permitting gases to escape therefrom.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification, of which the accompanying drawing forms a part, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved burial vault and showing one corner portion thereof broken away;

Fig. 2 a transverse sectional view of the vault on an enlarged scale; and, 1

Fig. 3 a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing only a detail of the construction and on an enlarged scale, and showing a modification.

In the practice of my invention, I provide a vault a which is oblong and approximately rectangular in form, and which comprises a bottom box-shaped portion 6 and a cover 0, the cover 0 being preferably slightly concave-convex in cross section.

The bottom part b of the vault comprises side walls 6 end walls 6 and a bottom I), and the said bottom part is molded of concrete in a suitable mold, and the side walls, end walls and bottom b 'are reinforcedas shown at d with any suitable reinforcing material, preferably wire mesh or wire network, and the bottom edges of the bottom part b are preferably rounded and provided with concavo-convex reinforcing metal strips 0 which are connected with the reinforcing material cl as shown at f, and the object of this construction is to prevent the breaking, cracking or injuring of said corners in the operation of moving the vault or the bottom part thereof from one point to another, or in handling saidv vault in any- Specificatlon of Letters Patent.

way, and to also function as a runner upon which the device may be slid.

The cover 0 is provided in the side and end portions thereof with a deep rabbet groove 9 in which the top edges of the side Patented Oct. 9, 1917. Application filed. A pri119, 1916. Serial No. 92,189. i

walls and end walls of the bottom of the vault fit, and this forms downwardly directed flange portions 9 on the cover which extend downwardly and overlap the side and end walls of the bottom part on the inside thereof and reinforce the top portions of the side and end walls of the bottom part of the vault. The cover and the side and end walls of the bottom part are provided with grooves h which are filled in with a packing 2' consisting preferably of fibrous material and-for which purpose,I preferably employ what is known as Japanese rope, and this material is saturated with a suitable cement j which will not harden or become dry, but will always remain in a more or less soft or plastic condition, and this cement fills the grooves h, and this makes a water and air tight connection between the cover and the bottom part or body of the vault.

The bottom or body part of the vault is also preferably provided with a lining 7c of tiling which gives a finished appearance thereto, and which also aids in making the vault waterproof and helps to strengthen the same.

I also provide means for ventilating the vault, or permitting the escape therefrom of obnoxious-odors and gases, and in this operation I place in one side wall of the bottom part of the vault a U-shaped trap device m having side portions m one of which opens inwardly into the vault as shown at m and the other outwardly or outside of the vault as shown at m*, and one side portion m of the trap m is provided with an enlargement m and in the bottom of the trap m is placed a predetermined amount of mercury, as shown at m, and the enlargement m is preferably placed nearer the top than the bottom of the trap.

The use of the trap m for ventilating the vault, as herein shown and described, is not limited to a vault alone, but this trap may i be used in connection with an ordlnary through the mercury m", or will raise said mercury into the enlargement m which will permit said gases to pass out, but the normal conditions on the outside of the vault are such that air or moisture cannot pass in-- wardly through the trap into the vault, the pressure in the vault being sufiicient to prevent this operation.

The cover a of the vault is provided with handles n, consisting preferably of metallic or other loops connected with the reinforcing material 0? in the top of said cover and in the usual manner, and it will be understood, of course, that the use of my improved vault will be the same as that of others of its class, and while I have shown and described the construction which I prefer, my invention is not limited to the exact details thereof as herein set out, and changes therein and modifications thereof may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its advantages.

In Fig. 3 of the drawing I have indicated a modification which consists in extending the outlet end m of the trap m and connecting an elbow m therewith, and with which is connected a pipe m which extends upwardly and above the ground as indicated at m and bent to form a goose neck m and by means of this construction the gases as they are discharged through the trap m will pass upwardly through the pipe m and 'out-throughthe goose neck end thereof,

,see

and if desired this pipe may be connected with a main pipe which will discharge said gases at a predetermined point, or into any suitable receptacle, and it will be further understood that the pipe m may be detached from the elbow 77% when it is believed that all of the gases have passed from within the vault and said pipe may be used for this same purpose a number of times in connection with different vaults, and it will "be understood that while I have shown the trap m as located in oneof the side walls of the vault, said trap may be located in either of the end walls thereof, if desired.

I-Iaving fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

A burial vault or casket provided in one side wall thereof with a trap one leg of which opens inwardly thereinto and the other outwardly therefrom, the leg which opens outwardly being provided with an attachment with which is detachably connected a vertical tubular member which extends above the ground level.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name in presence of the subscribing witnesses this 14th day of April, 1916.

C. E. MULREANY, H. E. 'IHoMPsoN. 

